Men from the Boys

Men from the Boys
Tony Parsons

The final episode in the trilogy that began with the million-copy bestseller MAN AND BOYTen years on from MAN AND BOY, it is crunch time for Harry…Life is good for Harry Silver. He has a beautiful wife, three wonderful children and a great job as producer of the cult radio show, A Clip Round the Ear. But Harry is about to turn forty and his ex-wife is back in town. Soon it could be time to kiss the good life goodbye…When Harry's fifteen-year-old son Pat moves out to live with his mother, the hard times have only just begun. With his son gone, his job at risk and his wife unsettled by the reappearance of her own ex, their dream seems to be falling apart.Into the chaos of Harry Silver's life stroll two old soldiers who fought alongside Harry's late father in The Battle of Monte Cassino in the spring of 1944. Will these two grumpy old men help Harry reclaim his son, his family and his life? And can they show Harry Silver what it really means to be a man?Funny, moving and unforgettable, MEN FROM THE BOYS is a story of how we live now.

Men From the Boys

Tony Parsons

For my son.And for my daughter, too.

‘I remember everything!’ cried Pinocchio. ‘Tell me quickly, dear snail, where did you leave my good fairy? What is she doing? Has she pardoned me? Does she still remember me? Does she love me still?’

Carlo Collodi, Pinocchio

Table of Contents

Cover Page (#u731d78cc-883b-5631-b151-8fbc5f64153c)

Title Page (#u58b5f3fe-221d-53e2-8123-6ab9efdcd1dd)

Dedication (#u032f6906-9901-547b-99b3-f2c90c014dd6)

Epigraph (#u09f05e41-13ed-55d8-8f72-782f8ed6882c)

Part one: autumn term – the secret language of girls (#u906b092e-ea99-5040-a17e-19c3428f6821)

One (#u49196d7f-7541-5b0e-92b0-53634be22512)

Two (#ubaf2cdf0-1f47-5796-a1a5-d8f4e120fc7e)

Three (#u5bc7208f-acd4-577e-a502-d322f673dca2)

Four (#u6c56a182-7a05-57b5-b9b4-38b384be9f63)

Five (#uf814eed5-1827-5e5b-8f86-7d957bf020aa)

Six (#litres_trial_promo)

Seven (#litres_trial_promo)

Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Part two: spring term – if i were a boy (#litres_trial_promo)

Ten (#litres_trial_promo)

Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)

Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)

Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Sixteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Seventeen (#litres_trial_promo)

Eighteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Nineteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Part three: summer term – what are you waiting for? (#litres_trial_promo)

Twenty (#litres_trial_promo)

Twenty-one (#litres_trial_promo)

Twenty-two (#litres_trial_promo)

Twenty-three (#litres_trial_promo)

Twenty-four (#litres_trial_promo)

Twenty-five (#litres_trial_promo)

Twenty-six (#litres_trial_promo)

Twenty-seven (#litres_trial_promo)

By the Same Author (#litres_trial_promo)

Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)

Part one: autumn term – the secret language of girls (#ulink_ef1df058-e86d-58d2-975b-5c2e115614e0)

One (#ulink_cbbfcb33-9c35-5e4e-8648-c9d78b4b2af1)

September. The first day of school. New blue blazers everywhere, leaves and conkers underfoot, but an untouched sky and summer clinging on. And now I thought I understood why my son had been so quiet and preoccupied all through the long holiday. I should have guessed, shouldn’t I? Sooner or later, there was going to be a girl.

I had wanted to believe it was just because he was almost fifteen.

I watched my son watching the girl. His face got red just looking at her.